''Code'' (stylized as ''C O D E'') is the eighth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by English

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

band Cabaret Voltaire, released in October 1987 by

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

. Two singles, "Don't Argue" and "Here to Go", were released from the album.

Content

The lyrics and title of "Don't Argue" incorporate verbatim a number of sentences from the narration of the 1945 short film ''

Your Job in Germany ''Your Job In Germany'' is a short film made for the United States War Department in 1945 just before Victory in Europe Day (VE). It was shown to US soldiers about to go on occupation duty in Germany. The film was made by the military film unit ...

'', directed by

Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...

. The film was aimed at American soldiers occupying Germany and strongly warned against trusting or fraternizing with German citizens.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

wrote that ''Code'' "finds Cabaret Voltaire at their loosest and most accessible", calling it "the closest thing CV ever made to a party record" and adding that it " chievesa genuine mechanistic funkiness reminiscent of late-'70s

Kraftwerk Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...

J. D. Considine J. D. Considine (born 1957) is a music critic who has been writing about music professionally since 1977. Background J. D. Considine's work has been published in numerous newspapers and music magazines, and he has contributed to several books. ...

, writing in ''

Musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

'', contrasted ''Code'' with Kraftwerk's "elegant electronics," claiming that "Cabaret Voltaire processes sound the way a mainframe crunches numbers" before backing up to say: "cybernetic as the Cabs' sound may be, their sensibility is surprisingly pop." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' wrote that ''Code'' "finds the ideal balance between accessibility and menace", calling it "perhaps the duo's most exhilirating work".

Track listing

# "Don't Argue" – 4:26 # "Sex, Money, Freaks" – 4:57 # "Thank You America" – 5:22 # "Here to Go" – 5:09 # "Trouble (Won't Stop)" – 5:07 # "White Car" – 2:44 # "No One Here" – 5:00 # "Life Slips By" – 3:26 # "Code" – 4:07 # "Hey Hey" – 3:58 (bonus track on UK CD issue) # "Here to Go (Little Dub)" – 4:10 (bonus track on UK CD issue)

Personnel

Cabaret Voltaire *

Stephen Mallinder Stephen William Mallinder (born 1 January 1955) is an English artist and musician who was a founding member of Cabaret Voltaire, and went on to work as Sassi & Loco, the Ku-Ling Bros., Hey, Rube!, Wrangler, and Creep Show. Biography Mallinder ...

– vocals, bass guitar,

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

* Richard H. Kirk – guitars, keyboards, computer-generated instrumentation with: *

Bill Nelson Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Nelson previously served as a United States Senator from Flor ...

– guitars on "Don't Argue", "Here to Go", "Trouble (Won't Stop)", "White Car" and "No One Here" *

Mark Brydon Mark Errington Brydon is an English Bass guitar, bassist, guitarist, composer, arranger, recording engineer, remix artist and record producer, producer best known as a member of the group Moloko. Previous work He comes from Sunderland, Tyne an ...

– bass guitar on "Sex, Money, Freaks" and "No One Here" * Simeon Lister – saxophone on "Sex, Money, Freaks" and "No One Here" *

Adrian Sherwood Adrian Maxwell Sherwood (born 20 January 1958, London, England) is an English record producer specialising in the genre of dub music. He has created a distinctive production style based on the application of dub effects and dub mixing technique ...

– production, also

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

ed a separately-released version of "Here to Go"

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1987 albums Cabaret Voltaire (band) albums Albums produced by Adrian Sherwood EMI Records albums